Consider how many new cyberpunk-inspired projects began popping up after Cyberpunk 2077's announcement. Sure, CD Project Red certainly didn't invent the cyberpunk subgenre, as there were plenty of other games before it. At the same time, the upcoming RPG has helped bring cyberpunk games back to the mainstream. In 2020 alone, there's already several confirmed cyberpunk projects coming to current/next gen consoles and PC.
For a while, it seemed cyberpunk-inspired media had become cliche and eventually phased out of mainstream pop culture for a long time. It's often argued that cyberpunk as a whole was just a subculture that had its brief moment in the sun before extending beyond its welcome. And with that phasing out meant cyberpunk games were even less likely to be greenlit or developed for that reason. Now, with Cyberpunk 2077 gaining great traction, a micro-resurgence of the cyberpunk genre has begun in games.
Height of Cyberpunk Games
Cyberpunk's massive popularity began in the 80s, as science fiction became a big pop culture hit thanks to many technological advancements during the decade. Techno music, special effects and animation in movies, and even the mainstream adoption of arcades and games in general, all provided a platform for the Cyberpunk craze to blossom. Cyberpunk wouldn't exist without movies like Blade Runner and wouldn't have persisted as long as it did without games like Snatcher or Shadowrun. These games helped pave the way for a litany of classic cyberpunk games that kept the subgenre alive in the burgeoning new medium of games.
From there, games like System Shock and later Deux Ex would further prove that cyberpunk would continue to live on in the not-so-niche activity of playing video games. Many 90s cyberpunk games like the aforementioned examples were some of the most influential games ever made, and paved the way for many other genres of games moving forward. Games from a variety of developers in the future would take inspiration from cyberpunk worlds, like how Final Fantasy 7's Midgar emphasized dystopia in its overall structure and design. But, while cyberpunk continued to lend inspiration to various other genres, devoted cyberpunk-specific games became less popular over time.
2077 Was a Catalyst For More Cyberpunk
Higher profile game developers/publishers tend to make waves when it announces or released a new game to fans. In this particular case, CD Projekt Red has influenced a great resurgence in cyberpunk-inspired games being developed from various sides of the industry. CD Projekt Red, responsible for developing the massively popular Witcher RPG series, started developing Cyberpunk 2077 as a love letter to the Cyberpunk 2020 tabletop game it's based on. The game was announced all the way back in 2012, and was long thought to be in development limbo until the game got its first gameplay trailer in 2018. Considering the massive hype surrounding 2077, many other cyberpunk games in the meantime scored a lot of love as a result of CD Projekt Red's upcoming game.
That's not to say it was the only reason why any cyberpunk games became popular, but it certainly helped immensely. Pop culture in general hadn't really cared for cyberpunk media for a long time, and it very much became the niche subculture it began as many decades ago. Some games shone brighter than others like Mirror's Edge and the .hack series, but those games had various other aspects that were far more impactful on the games' success compared to their cyberpunk-inspired stories. That being said, plenty of fantastic cyberpunk games came as a result of Cyberpunk 2077's announcement.
Low Life and High Tech is Back
Even in 2020, there are several cyberpunk projects slated for release before, after, and around Cyberpunk 2077's official release. These games aren't going to suffer in comparison to 2077 despite being aesthetically and narratively similar. In fact, in many cases these games will benefit from Cyberpunk 2077's massive popularity, and serve to prove that cyberpunk media has reached another peak in popularity. At least for games, cyberpunk is incredibly hot right now, with all sorts of games serving up their own interpretations of the subgenre. At the very least Cyberpunk 2077 played a pivotal role of reminding players what the cyberpunk genre was all about.
Outside of Cyberpunk 2077, there are a ton of promising cyberpunk-inspired games like Ghostrunner coming soon. Even if 2077 will be a landmark video game experience worthy of everyone's time, the game has brought to light several other projects worth playing as well.
Cyberpunk 2077 releases September 17, 2020 for PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One